KUALA LUMPUR, March 29 — The Finance Ministry today said the government has fulfilled its pledge to help single people in the bottom 40 percentile with RM300 million paid out under the Bantuan Sara Hidup (BSH) scheme this week.

Its minister, Lim Guan Eng, said in a statement that the aid has been channeled to three million recipients.

He pointed out that his ministry had also allocated RM120 million to Bantuan Pelajar Pendidikan Tinggi, a scheme for university students.

Under the scheme, Lim said each student will be given RM100 in the form of a Bank Rakyat student discount card which is being distributed in stages starting yesterday.

"The government will continue to give attention to the issue of cost of living, especially among the low income group, and will take steps to ensure that aid will be given to those who are really in need,” he said.

Lim also said on January 28, the government had paid out RM1.2 billion in the first phase of the BSH scheme to 4.1 million households.

Those who have further questions on BSH can call 1-800-88-2747 or email their queries to: bsh@treasury.gov.my.